Apple Releases Lion Developer Preview 3

Apple just released a new OS X Lion Developer Preview. The update weighs at around 1.07 GB and it’s available now in the Software Update control panel. It is recommended for all users running Lion DP 2, and Apple’s Mac Dev Center seems to confirm the new build is indeed Lion Developer Preview 3, although the direct link on the Dev Center still goes back to Lion Developer Preview 2. It appears Apple is now seeding Lion DP update only via Software Update.

Mac OS  X Lion Developer Preview 3 is now available via Software Update for systems running developer preview 2 update 2.

 

In the past weeks, Apple released via Software Update two updates for Lion Developer Preview 2; these latest updates to Lion DP 2 are needed in order to install Developer Preview 3 through Software Update. Read more

BreakTime Helps You Step Away From Your Mac

Where Take Five remembers to unpause music that you seemingly forgot about, BreakTime is your queue to get up off your butt and take a brisk walk around the office or grab a bottled water. Featuring a beautiful interface that carefully counts down (perhaps you could use it as a Pomodoro timer in your menubar), BreakTime will carefully interrupt your session so you don’t lose any progress on what you’re working on, while encouraging you to rest your eyes or stretch at your desk.

If you happen to walk away from your Mac for a while, BreakTime has Magic Rescheduling™ built in that monitors your keyboard and mouse usage – the next time your return to your Mac, BreakTime will start the timer and smartly determine when it’s appropriate to take a break. Available for $2.99 in the App Store, BreakTime reminds you that sitting all isn’t healthy.

First Build of Mac OS X 10.6.8 Seeded to Developers

As noted by MacRumors, Apple has seeded the first build of Mac OS X 10.6.8 to developers. The new build, which carries number 10K521, confirms there’s room for at least one more Snow Leopard update before the release of 10.7 Lion, scheduled for this summer.

According to people familiar with the new build, focus areas for 10.6.8 are AirPort, Graphics Drivers, Mac App Store, Networking, QuickTime and VPN. Apple released the last public version of Snow Leopard, Mac OS X 10.6.7, on March 21, including fixes for Mac App Store, SMB servers and Back to my Mac.

Analyst: iPhone 4S Coming with HSPA+, Minor Design Changes

BusinessInsider relays a report from Jefferies analyst Peter Misek claiming that, according to his industry checks, the next-generation iPhone will be called “iPhone 4S” and it will come with a dual-core A5 processor, and better cameras. Whilst these specs have been reported by several other sources in the past, Misek also seems to believe the iPhone 4S will indeed feature minor “cosmetic changes” (thus contradicting rumors we’ve heard in the past few weeks) and support for HSPA+ networks.

Because the 4G chips weren’t ready, Apple is going with the minor update to the iPhone 4.

Misek also revealed the next version of the phone will work with Sprint, T-Mobile, and China Mobile.

Speculation arisen around the next-gen iPhone model suggested Apple was already testing iPhone 4 prototypes running a custom A5 chip (the same found on the iPad 2) for better performances, but those old reports couldn’t specify whether the temporary iPhone 4 demo units would result in an iPhone 4-like design for the final product. Misek believes the iPhone 5 – which was rumored to have NFC, a bigger screen, 4G connectivity, or a thinner form factor, among other things – will look like an iPhone 4, only faster on the inside. Upgrading the 3G performances of the iPhone also falls in line with Tim Cook’s recent statements about LTE 4G chipsets, which the COO mentioned the Q2 2011 earnings call, saying they would have required “design compromises” Apple wasn’t willing to accept.

Just how many people are using the iPad 2 camera? (Answer: Not many)→

Just how many people are using the iPad 2 camera? (Answer: Not many)

Two things going against the iPad are that it’s unwieldy to use as a camera, and it’s not even a good camera to start with. When we took our test pictures, we got passable (but not really great) shots with enough ample lighting, but you’re still not going to be able to take the spectacular photos that the iPhone 4 can. Compare that to what the iPhone 4 is genuinely capable of in someone like Josh Helferrich’s hands: http://campl.us/6Qb.

The iPad isn’t currently a great tool for photography, and there’s a reason why Apple was seemingly reluctant to add it. Unfortunately, when Apple finally did add the camera, it feels like it’s just there to be there. Electricpig’s infographic makes the point that nobody is using this feature on the iPad 2.

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Google News Goes Local on Mobile Browsers

With an official post on Google News’ blog, Google has announced that starting today in the United States, Google News will be able of displaying location-based content on iOS and Android mobile browsers. By giving access to your location information in iOS Safari, Google News will find news relevant to where you are in the US with a new section called “News near you.”

To use this feature, visit Google News from the browser of your Android smartphone or iPhone. If this is the first time you are visiting Google News on your phone since this feature became available, a pop-up will ask you if you want to share your location. If you say yes, news relevant to your location will appear in a new section called “News near you” which will be added at the bottom of the homepage. You can reorganize the sections later via the personalization page.

The updated section is available now on news.google.com, but it’s restricted to the United States. Remember you’ll have to grant Safari access to your location, otherwise the feature won’t work.

AOL Launching Flipboard-like “Editions” for iPad This Summer

Following a trend that sees publishers and companies struggling to deliver personalized content to iPad owners who want to filter news and articles out of their Twitter and Facebook social feeds, AOL is planning on releasing a Flipboard-like magazine for iPad this summer called Editions, BusinessInsider reports. Editions, currently teased on the web with an official landing page, appears to be a much more complex solution than Flipboard though: whilst the iPad app of the year 2010 pulls any link shared on your Twitter or Facebook account, not applying any sort of filtering or smart recognition algorithm, Editions will try to be intelligent enough to only display content that’s relevant to you, related to your location, in a way that reminds of a daily newspaper delivered to you once a day. Call it a mix between Flipboard and News Corp.’s The Daily, AOL’s Editions will even go as far as creating a cover for the top story in your social feed, as well as aggregating all content from AOL-owned publications like TechCrunch and Engadget.

To pick these stories, Editions will look at what your social networks are recommending and the general topics they seem to be interested in, as well as your location (to deliver local news). Then, it will look at which stories you click on and how long you spend reading them, and adjust over time.

Editions is also not meant to replace Web surfing – instead, it will be delivered once a day, just like a newspaper. Temkin noted that AOL’s usage statistics show that people don’t use an iPad like a mobile phone, checking it constantly throughout the day. Instead, usage peaks at morning and night, when people are home and have some time to sit back and read.

Editions will launch this summer (before September 20th, they say) only on the iPad, as AOL doesn’t believe Android tablets will gain much “traction.” The idea sounds interesting – as every concept revolving around automatic news personalization does – but it’ll have to face fierce competition from the likes of News.me (which relies on a similar concept and is developed by the folks behind URL shortening service bit.ly), Yahoo’s upcoming Livestand and the next version of Flipboard, which is rumored to be heavily based on a new algorithm for better news filtering as the result of the acquisition of Ellerdale Project last year. Flipboard recently announced they tripled the app’s usage and doubled the userbase in just over two months.

Foxlink to Expand Apple’s Retail Distribution in Asia with 50 New Stores

According to a report by Digitimes published today, Foxlink is planning on opening 50 new Apple-exclusive retail stores in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Korea by the end of 2011. Currently, Foxlink has 50 stores in Asia, and the move to double its presence  to sell Apple products-only could drive a significant change in Apple’s retail distribution in these countries.

Taiwan-based Foxlink plans to expand the number of its exclusive stores for Apple products in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Korea to 100 outlets by the end of the year, from 50 currently, according to the company.

In addition to Foxlink, Cybermart, the Foxconn Group’s retail chain in China, will also open a new store in Changchun, Jilin province, China in July with the store to also set up an exclusive outlet of 200 square meters to sell Apple products.

Back in late January, it was also reported that Cybermart International, Foxconn retail subsidiary, announced its intention to open 500 new Apple-licensed stores in Greater China. The first store was set to open in Tianjin on April 1, 2011, and Digitimes claims today other locations include Xiamen, Zhengzhou, Changchun, Taiyuan, Xinjiang, and Kunming. At the Q2 2011 earnings call, Apple announced the opening of a 5th store in China, with Tim Cook confirming that Apple was “on a tear” in the country thanks to iPhone sales being up 250% in Greater China.